This is the worst Oklahoma State has been in ages! A deceiving 3-0 hope followed by nine consecutive heartbreaking Big 12 losses! HC Mike Gundy put together a winning team when he took on the role in 2005. Despite his first season failure, the Cowboys bounced back to become a winning team. But this one fateful season is threatening to outweigh the fruitful past records and the pressure falls on Gundy. But firing their long-term HC may not be the solution for Oklahoma State.
As The Oklahoman Austin Curtright wrote, “Gundy is currently on a 5-year rollover contract, which extends by a season every Jan. 1. He earned $7.75 million in 2024. Gundy’s contract is set to lengthen by another season on Jan. 1, 2025, along with his annual $125,000 raise.” This means that if Oklahoma State decides to fire Mike Gundy, they’ll have to pay nearly $25 million for his buyout. And that’s a big problem for the Cowboys, as CFB analyst RJ Young views.
In his new YouTube episode on The Number One College Football Network Show on December 7, he said, “$25 million doesn’t sound like a whole lot when we talk about firing people now because we’ve seen people fire for way more, but it’s still a lot for a place like Oklahoma State.”
Several reports stated that the Oklahoma State Board of Regents asked Mike Gundy for a restructured contract. As Young asserted, “Oklahoma State is looking at Southern Methodists” by taking a cut from their HC’s salary to grow their NIL funds to land high-profile players to turn their fortunes. Right now, Gundy’s stuck in a position on whether he’ll agree with the cut or move on from Oklahoma State after two decades.
However, Young drew a silver lining from this possible restructured contract by bringing in the example of dark horse SMU. He said, “Southern Methodists turned this season and last season into the magic year that you thought it could be with realignment and the college football playoff extending. They are up 15,000% in ticket sales, and there was no hotter ticket among the new schools to the new conferences than the University of Texas and Southern Methodist football.” So what did they do that would also benefit the Cowboys?
SMU cements its dominance in college football
Money is what makes college football go around, at least in hiring and recruitment. HC Rhett Lashlee transformed SMU by leading them to an AAC Championship victory last season. With the same 11-win record this season, the Mustangs have topped their new conference with their upcoming ACC Championship game set against the conference powerhouse Clemson. And a trip to the playoffs that’s made possible with money.
According to RJ Young, the reason behind SMU’s success this year is getting the right players and coaching staff. He said, “A Dallas product at quarterback in Kevin Jennings. That’s the like of supreme money dawg!” Lashlee’s recruiting efforts paid off when he won South Oak Cliff QB Kevin Jennings in 2022. Young added, “From just up the street in Arkansas, he built this staff out of a defensive coordinator from Liberty and an offensive coordinator Casey Woods.” The creative genius of OC Casey Woods and DC Scott Symons who were both hired in December 2021 are two integral reasons why SMU reached this peak.
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